The Nights are Shorter With You
by TheNovelArtist
Summary: In which Kyo is there when Tohru has a nightmare.


_Kyo/Tohru Week Day 1: Stay_

* * *

He heard it on accident. That little sniffle coming from the other room.

He thought he was imagining it, but he couldn't leave it be. To confirm it, he walked over to her door and placed his ear against it. When he heard that sound again, he didn't hesitate to knock. "Tohru?" he quietly asked.

The night was silent for a long while, but he waited until she answered the door. When he did, the night prevented him from seeing her well and clear, but there was enough light for him to make out that she was grinning, though it was likely forced. "Kyo. What brings you by so late in the evening?"

He frowned at her. "I heard you, you know."

Instantly, her smile vanished.

He knew it. She _had_ been crying. "Are you okay?"

She forced a smile bac on and nodded. "Yeah. Just fine. Don't worry. Sorry for disturbing you."

She tried shutting the door, but he stopped her. "You know I don't believe you, right?"

Her gaze fell, and she let go of the door.

"You were crying," he said. "Are you really okay?"

She sniffed. "I will be. It… it was just a nightmare."

"_Just_ a nightmare?" he prodded.

Again, she sniffed, this time rubbing her nose with the back of her hand. "A scary one. But don't worry. I'll be fine."

Kyo sighed. "Do… do you want to talk about it?"

She shook her head. "Not particularly."

From there, Kyo didn't know what to do. He didn't want to push, but at the same time, he didn't want to just leave. "Do… do you want me to stay for a while?"

Tohru looked up at him, the minimal moonlight that came through her window bouncing in her eyes. "Would you?"

She didn't argue with him, meaning she had to be really freaked out over something. He grabbed her hand, only to realize she was shaking. "Of course."

She squeezed tight, conveying just how bad her fear truly was.

"Are you sure you don't want to talk about it?" Kyo asked as he followed her into her room, shutting the door behind him.

"Yeah," she answered, settling back down on her bed. She didn't let go of his hand as she pulled him onto the bed beside her. "I'm good as long as you're here."

He sighed, sitting down on the edge of her bed, fearing that if he laid down, it would be far too easy to fall asleep next to her. Which wasn't a bad thing, but he'd have to face Shigure's harassment and Yuki's wrath in the morning. "Okay," he whispered. "As long as you're sure."

Her smile was true and reassuring. "Positive. Thank you, Kyo."

She gave his hand a squeeze, and it did things to his heart. "I'll stay until you're asleep."

"That might not be for a while," she mumbled. "I'm really awake."

Kyo sighed. "Did the nightmare scare you that badly?"

She nodded, her hand tightening on his. "Yeah."

_Ahh, dammit._ Of all the things he was able to fight and resist, she certainly wasn't one of them. He gave into his impulsive cat nature before he could think the better of it and hugged her, garnering a squeak from her.

_Poof!_

As a cat, he was still in her arms. Where he planned to stay for a while. Without a word, he snuggled up against her chest, forcing a purr to start up.

He felt her sigh, then giggle. Next thing he knew, she was squeezing him tight. "Thank you, Kyo," she whispered, beginning to stroke his head in the way he'd never tell her he loved. "You're amazing."

He purred even louder.

She was asleep within an hour, her breathing having evened out. Kyo knew this would be the time to get up and leave, but he just couldn't bring himself to do it. This was too comfortable, too warm, too precious a moment that he might never get again. His eyes were growing too heavy for him to think moving was the better idea, and so he didn't and let himself fall asleep in her arms.

* * *

When Kyo woke in the morning, he realized he was still in his cat form. He also realized he was warm in her arms. Under no circumstances did he want to move, but he really _really_ needed to.

So, he slipped from Tohru's grasp. She stayed asleep, thankfully. Last thing he wanted to do was wake her.

But he realized two things. One: the door was closed and he was a cat and didn't know if he could get it open. Two: even if he _was _able to leave, his clothes would be left on her bed.

He sighed. Crap.

Well, there wasn't much he could do besides wait for—

_Poof!_

That.

Tohru stirred, her face scrunching cutely while Kyo scrambled to grab his pants. She was always so flustered over them transforming back without clothes. Last thing he needed to do was scar her by having her waking up to him buck-ass nude.

He was able to pull on his pants just as she sighed, falling back into a deeper sleep. He breathed out a sigh of relief as he finished buttoning his pants. He then grabbed his shirt, slipping it on as he headed to the door. Quietly as he could, he slipped from her room and carefully shut the door behind him.

When it was closed, he turned, ready to slip back into his own room and hide there for a portion of the morning and pretend like he hadn't spent the night sleeping with Tohru.

"Kyo."

The sound of his name sent him flying 5 feet in the air, and when he landed, he was facing a smirking Shigure.

"What were you doing in Tohru's room, hmm?"

* * *

_Bonus:_

"I'm sorry you got in trouble," Tohru said that night once they finally had a moment alone. Shigure and Yuki had been hounding and harassing him all day, not daring to leave him alone with Tohru at all. Finally, Tohru had a fit and started crying over how she couldn't sleep and basically painted Kyo out to be a prince in disguise. Not that she needed to go that far; Tohru tears could break any Sohma, especially Yuki and Shigure. His torture ended the moment the first tear slipped out.

"Don't worry about it," Kyo said. "You needed me, so I could deal with it."

"Still," she said, grabbing the back of his shirt and resting her forehead against his shoulder. "I'm really sorry."

He sighed. "It's fine, Tohru. But… thanks."

She didn't leave. Instead, she gripped his shirt tighter. "Kyo."

"Yeah?"

"Um…" She was trembling; he could feel it. "Could… could I be selfish just one more night? It's okay if you say no. But… you said I could be selfish, so I wanted to ask…"

Just how in the world could he say no to her? "Yeah," he said. "You can be selfish."

In a flash, her arms were around him.

_Poof!_

Before he could realize it, she was snuggling his cat form. "Just for a while," she said. "Until I fall asleep. I'll leave the door open this time so you can slip out and back into your room immediately. Okay."

He couldn't find the words to say to that. So he settled for not saying a thing and just purring for her instead.

* * *

_A/N: I read a story with a similar premise and just had to put my own spin on it. _


End file.
